I didn't join here until after I bought my first wrangler last winter. I've been a proud jeep owner for years, but they've been Cherokees. I fell in love with wranglers when I was 15 years old and a friend of mine had a brand new 1995 model that we beat within an inch of it's life numerous times, but it would never die.

My previous jeeps...
97 Cherokee...no pictures as I only owned it for a few short months in 1998 before a drunk driver hit me and totaled it out.

I finally decided to pull the trigger on a yj after searching around looking at jk's and tj's for months. I realized that I could pick up a yj on the cheap and just build it the way I wanted it. I neglected to mention the purchase to my wife :). It was towed to the house for free since the previous owner was a mechanic at a repair shop, and when it showed up she flipped and blew a gasket. Didn't talk to me for 3 days...but she came around pretty fast when I mentioned that I was selling my f250 that got 8mpg. I guess she didn't think I needed 3 vehicles of my own ;)

So, with some extremely fresh paint, the wrangler had to be driven. The 4.0 in the cherokee had finally given up, and I had to be to work a few hours later. So, the Cherokee sat in my garage for a few months until I found a decent deal on a motor for it.

The 4cyl auto in the wrangler quickly showed its flaws...like freeway speeds and no oil pressure at idle. It leaked fluid from the trans, tc, radiator...and there was a decent sized puddle of something or other every time I parked it. I decided to drive it until it died, or until I found a decent swap for it.

I found a smoking deal on a 4.0/ax15/sye'd 231 with the harness, driveshaft, PCM, 1" MORE mm lift for $450. The 4.0 has a crack in the block, but I have a spare block in the corner that I intend to rebuild in the future. For the time being, the jb weld the PO put on there holds pretty well...but it still weeps a little antifreeze. http://i202.photobucket.com/albums/a...i/9b3ce8fb.jpg